Motorola buying Symbol Technologies for $3.9 billion
Two of our favorite companies (well, more like two companies that we've heard of) have just announced that they'll be getting nice and cozy in the next few months, with cellphone giant Motorola agreeing to buy barcode-scannin', RFID-taggin' Symbol Technologies for about $3.9 billion. Besides handsets, Moto also has a significant foothold in the mobile enterprise market, and Symbol's RFID, barcode, and ruggedized PDA products will supposedly double its presence in inventory management while at the same time "being accretive to earnings," according to analyst Lawrence Harris of Oppenheimer & Company. The deal will reportedly be completed later this year or in early 2007, at which time Motorola will change the name of its new acquisition to SMBL.
